This invention relates generally to the field of electronic data storage and retrieval systems. In particular, the present invention relates to a microwave assisted recording system.
A magnetic data storage and retrieval system typically includes a writer for storing magnetically encoded information on a magnetic medium and a reader for retrieving the magnetically encoded information from the magnetic medium. The writer typically includes one or more magnetic poles surrounded by a conductive coil. To write data to the magnetic medium, a time varying write current is caused to flow through the conductive coil, which in turn produces a time varying magnetic field through the poles. The magnetic medium is then passed near the air bearing surface (ABS) of the writer at a predetermined distance such that the medium passes through the magnetic field. As the write current changes in direction and magnitude, the magnetic field changes in direction and magnitude as well. In a typical magnetic writer, a sufficient magnetic field must be applied to write to the magnetic medium. More specifically, the field produced by the head at the magnetic medium must be of sufficient magnitude to overcome the high coercivity of the magnetic medium.
As data storage densities in magnetic recording continue to progress in an effort to increase the storage capacity of hard disc drives, magnetic transition (bit) dimensions and recording head critical features are being pushed below 100 nm. In addition, making the recording medium stable at higher areal densities requires magnetically harder (high coercivity) storage medium materials. Typically, writing on such media requires a high magnitude magnetic field. Currently, magnetic writers are based on the idea of focusing the magnetic field from the pole towards the magnetic media.
It has been proposed that the effective writability to magnetic media can be improved if addition to a “direct current” (DC) write field (i.e. a magnetic field with a frequency below 5 GHz) created by the writer and possibly other sources, a radio frequency (RF) assist field is simultaneously applied to the media. This type of recording is referred to as microwave assisted magnetic recording (MAMR). In a conventional setup the RF assist fields are required to coincide in the media spatially with the DC or low frequency write fields. Several factors, however, limit the practicality of this writing method, including the fact that the effective writability gradient depends on both RF and DC gradients and their mutual alignment and the need to create sufficiently high RF assist fields.